Guardian Cryptic 29,475 by Brummie

by

The puzle may be found at https://www.theguardian.com/crosswords/cryptic/29475.

Brummie in top form: not too difficult, but with plenty of well-crafted clues. Although Brummie often includes one, I do not see any theme (which is not necessarily to say that there is none there).

ACROSS
1 BRUTAL
Animal research facility upset about mating period (6)
An envelope (‘about’) of RUT (‘mating period’) in BAL, a reversal (‘upset’) of LAB. Your choice: ‘upset’ as a reversal indicator would be more suitable in a down light (but arguably valid here also); or ‘upset’ as an anagrind for a derived anagram.
5 GYRATION
‘Empty’ chap wanting helping, that’s Twist (8)
A charade of G[u]Y (‘chap’) minus its middle letter (’empty’) plus RATION (‘helping’). Excellent surface.
9 UNPROVEN
To be established, turn up with Vernon (8)
An anagram (‘turn’) of ‘up’ plus ‘Vernon’.
10 TRUSTY
Tense, out of practice – but reliable (6)
A charade of T (‘tense’) plus RUSTY (‘out of practice’).
11 AUSTRALASIAN
Maybe New Zealand native dancing is as natural as giving up sex at first! (12)
A charade of A, which is ‘a[s]’ (‘the second one) minus (‘giving up’) S (‘Sex at first’); plus USTRALASIAN, an anagram (‘dancing’) of ‘is as natural’
13
See 18
14 LANDSLIP
Rock movement: country music, essentially, with edge (8)
A charade of LAND (‘country’) plus S (‘muSic essentially’) plus LIP (‘edge’).
17 UTENSILS
Cutlery, unless it’s ground? (8)
An anagram (‘ground’) of ‘unless it’.
18, 13 RING PULL
Circus feature draw: access to drink (4,4)
A charade of RING (‘circus feature’) plus PULL (‘draw’).
20 ONE-HORSE RACE
Working on research into Old English? The others don’t stand a chance! (3-5,4)
An envelope (‘into’) of NEHORSERAC, an anagram (‘working’) of ‘on research’ in OE (‘Old English’).
23 ADROIT
Road constructed by one-time expert (6)
A charade of ADRO, an anagram (‘constructed’) of ‘road’ plus I (‘one’) plus T (‘time’).
24 BEFUDDLE
Round off Fed double cryptic puzzle (8)
An anagram (‘cryptic’) of ‘fed d[o]uble’ minus the O (’round off’).
25 IN THEORY
Elected politician recruits man on paper (2,6)
An envelope (‘recruits’) of HE (‘man’) in IN (‘elected’) plus TORY (‘politician’).
26 ERRATA
Time to import grass bloomers (6)
An envelope (‘to import’) of RAT (‘grass’, snitch) in ERA (‘time’).
DOWN
2 RANK
Gross author, not popular (4)
A subtraction: RANK[in] (‘author’, perhaps Ian Rankin, author of the Inspector Rebus novels) minus IN (‘not popular’).
3 TARPAULIN
Urinal fitted with tap cover (9)
An anagram (‘fitted’?) of ‘urinal’ plus (‘with’) ‘tap’.
4 LAVISH
Liberal whip, very independent at heart (6)
An envelope (‘at heart’) of V (‘very’) plus I (‘independent’) in LASH (‘whip’).
5 GENERAL ASSEMBLY
Military leader on rig forms part of UN (7,8)
A charade of GENERAL (‘military leader’) plus ASSEMBLY (‘rig’).
6 RATTLING
Strikingly good non-stop chatter (8)
Double definition.
7 TRUSS
In effect, Russia’s ex-leader (5)
A hidden answer in ‘effecT RUSSia’
8 OUT-PATIENT
One not in need of a bed is not to be considered long-suffering (3-7)
A charade of OUT (‘not to be considered’) plus PATIENT (‘long-suffering’).
12 HUNTINGDON
English town chasing crime boss (10)
A charade of HUNTING (‘chasing’) plus DON (mafia, ‘crime boss’).
15 SURRENDER
County almost meets terrible end – right to give up (9)
A charade of SURRE[y] (‘county’) minus its last letter (‘almost’) plus NDE, an anagram (‘terrible’) of ‘end’; plus R (‘right’).
16 LIBRETTO
New title has nothing about British book (8)
An envelope (‘about’) of BR (‘British’) in LIETT, an anagram (‘new’) of ‘title’; plus (‘has’) O (‘nothing’).
19 BAFFLE
Package covering very loud sound restrictor (6)
An envelope (‘covering’) of FF (fortissimo, musically ‘very loud’) in BALE (‘package’).
21 HOOCH
I’m surprised about church procuring prohibited drink (5)
A charade o HOO, a reversal (‘about’) of OOH (‘I’m surptised’) plus CH (‘church’).
22 SLOT
Small parcel opening (4)
A charade of S (‘small’) plus LOT (‘parcel’).

47 comments on “Guardian Cryptic 29,475 by Brummie”

  1. I hadn’t heard of RATTLING meaning non-stop chatter. I thought maybe that “non-stop” meant to remove the “p” from “prattling”, and was scratching my head.

    Having not heard of HUNTINGDON, I failed, although I should have got it from the wordplay.

    I always thought of the LIBRETTO as the words of an opera, but yes, I guess they come from a book.

    No groans, no guffaws, but plenty of smiles. Thanks Brummie & PeterO.

  2. GDU@1: What about he was rattling off all the names of past players, or she rattled on at length. The LIBRETTO of a musical is often called the book. Interesting to see BEFUDDLE and BAFFLE crossing each other. Having inaccurately typed in TARPAULIN, I was looking for ages for a word – any word – that would start with P for 11a. The moment I realised and saw it started with A, the answer leapt out at me (I had discounted the anagram because there was no P in the fodder). Good fun – thanks, Brummie and PeterO.

  4. AUSTRALASIAN was new to me but well clued. Either I’ve mistyped it or it’s new to the spelling checker as well. Nice crossword, thanks to setter and blogger.

  5. In 5a, is ‘Twist’ both the definition for GYRATION and a reference to Oliver Twist, who asked for another helping? And ‘Empty’ is both to get G(u)Y as well as the feeling of being empty, hence the inverted commas? I’m not sure what the correct terms are.
    Lovely puzzle, quite a few smiles.
    Thanks Brummie and PeterO

  7. Solid puzzle. OUT-PATIENT my last to go in. Maybe I haven’t quite woken up yet but it felt like I was battling double negatives in that one and I struggled to work out quite which bit was which. BEFUDDLE my favourite.

    SueM48: I’m not sure why Brummie has put ‘Empty’ in inverted commas. It doesn’t seem necessary at all and adds nothing to the surface for me. What am I missing?

    Thanks Brummie and PeterO

  8. Excellent puzzle from one of my favourite setters. I was surprised to see OUT-PATIENT hyphenated but I’m sure it’s an alternative. Agree that GYRATION was an excellent surface, as was LANDSLIP. I couldn’t work out a theme apart from some linked words like PULL RANK and UNPROVEN (IN) THEORY. Like TassieTim @2, I also noticed the interlocking BAFFLE and BEFUDDLE. Thankfully not too taxing for a Friday.

    Ta Brummie & PeterO.

  9. Found myself fairly RATTLING through this in the early hours this morning. Though 6d seemed to me the least impressive of an excellent bunch of clues. OUT-PATIENT was loi, and something I’m going to be later today at our local hospital…many thanks Brummie and PeterO.

  10. I couldn’t see a theme either, but that’s no guarantee there isn’t one. I wondered about counties at one stage having entered HUNTINGDON (County town of a county that is no more) and SURRENDER.

    I found myself RATTLING through this too.

    Thank you to PeterO and Brummie.

  11. This seemed easier than usual from Brummie, but it was highly enjoyable. Can’t see a theme either, wondered if there was something going on with BAFFLE/BEFUDDLE and TRUSS/TRUSTY crossing. I loved the surfaces for LANDSLIP, OUTPATIENT and the aforementioned TRUSS.

  12. Loved the follow-ons: UNPROVEN-TRUSTY, ADROIT-BEFUDDLE, and I didn’t find the puzzle a BRUTAL GYRATION either.

    Is there a ghost theme of ‘right and wrong’? Many thanks to Brummie for an entertaining crossword and PeterO for the blog.

  13. A steady, and enjoyable solve for a Friday.

    Loved the smooth surface of LANDSLIP.

    I’m another who pondered long about ’empty’. I rather like SueM48’s thoughts about the Dickens lad.

    Many thanks, both.

  15. On a first read through I thought this was going to be much harder than proved the case. As with PostMark@ 7, OUT-PATIENT was the last to go in, and I was momentarily held up by my fixation on some sort of potted plant. I especially liked RANK and RING PULL. I can see how HUNTINGDON might be a bit trickier for non UK based solvers. Huntingdonshire was an old county which I’m sure is mentioned in several of the classics. A good end to the week. With thanks to Brummie and PeterO.

  16. New for ME: BAFFLE = sound restrictor; LANDSLIP.

    Like some others, OUT-PATIENT was my LOI.

    Thanks, both.

  17. I’ve really enjoyed the run of puzzles this week, and this one capped it off nicely.

    I revealed LIBRETTO: my brain seems to switch off when I’ve got one answer remaining, which I must do something about. Enjoyed RATTLING – reminds me of when I was young and our cats were being particularly vocal, my parents would describe it (affectionately) as rattle. I’ve rarely, if ever, heard it used like that since.

  19. Thanks PeterO.
    Like PostMark @7, I had to pause to deal with the double negatives in OUT-PATIENT. Liked it when I woke up.
    My picks were BEFUDDLE, BAFFLE, BRUTAL and LANDSLIP.

    The central column, GENERAL ASSEMBLY, seemed way too easy and maybe was there for a reason. Anagram (assembly) of general would give enlarge or gleaner, but I ran into a dead end there.

    AlanC@8 is a master sleuth, and I’m way out of my area of expertise here, but there appeared to be links between ERRATA, UNPROVEN, IN THEORY, BAFFLE, BEFUDDLE, possibly in the context of GYRATION, AUSTRALASIAN, RING, LANDSLIP?
    I found scientific papers on the interrelated effects of climate change, whether man-made or not, and tilting of the earth’s axis, and environment, some with specific reference to Australasia. Basically, as I understand it, the acceleration of temperature increase since 2000 is said to have been due to human-caused greenhouse emissions, and has resulted in a significant shift in the tilt of the earth’s axis, which then has further flow-on effect to forests, oceans etc. Eddie James/Brummie compiles crosswords for specialist magazines, including Geographical, the magazine of the Royal Geographical Society. Theoretically possible this is an interest of his? Been a very interesting afternoon for me.

  20. I took “chatter” to mean the noise rather than the conversation. I liked ONE-HORSE RACE. By coincidence, just as I was struggling with 12 down, my daughter told me she was going to Huntingdon.

  21. HUNTINGDON was John Major’s constituency throughut his time in Parliament, which raises its profile a bit, or at least did.

  22. In ‘Northanger Abbey’ the term ‘a rattle’ is applied particularly to John Thorpe, friend of Catherine Morland’s brother and brother of her friend Isabella. For example, after a peculiarly baffling verbal farrago by Thorpe, Austen remarks that “[Catherine] had not been brought up to understand the propensities of a rattle, nor to know to how many idle assertions and impudent falsehoods the excess of vanity will lead.”

  24. Excellent puzzle and very smooth throughout. ADROIT was particularly adroit. I remembered Huntingdon as the birthplace of Oliver Cromwell.

  25. I was pleased to work my way slowly and steadily through this puzzle finding nothing too obscure, although I did have to look up 12d HUNTINGDON to confirm the answer I got from the crossers and word play. I agree with SueM48@5/6 and others about the clever Dickensian surface of the clue for 5a GYRATION. Thanks to Brummie and PeterO, and also thanks to forum contributors like paddymelon@19 and several others for some interesting back stories and remarks, including possible thematic links.

  26. Solid stuff from Brummie. In stark contrast to yesterday’s Picaroon I filled almost all of this in using my trusty Bic Biro rather than a pencil. Testament to Brummie’s precision and unambiguous solutions maybe? Whereas with Picaroon I never feel 100% confident I’ve got it right

    I liked BEFUDDLE for yet another faux setter reference and ADROIT was classy

    Cheers B&P

  28. Grateful for the split solution for once as I couldn’t figure out the town until. I got the U from PULL.
    Only grumble, as usual for me, the use of the rather bland “author” in 2d. By now I imagine every surname in the world could describe an author of some sort.
    Thanks Brummie and PeterO.

  29. PostMark@7 and SueM48 I took the inverted commas around ’empty’ to be a reference to the fact that Oliver Twist asked for a second helping – so he was still hungry but not, technically, empty?

  30. Thanks Brummie and PeterO.
    scraggs@17 – I often find myself looking at a grid thinking “surely this one last clue can’t be so much harder than all the rest of the puzzle”. As you say, it feels like the brain switches off. Is this a common experience?

  31. Thanks to Brummie for an excellent puzzle. Expert cluing and a lot of laughs. Had a couple that needed a bit of flexible thinking and where the sound of the pennies dropping could be heard in the next county. Thanks also to PeterO for a comprehensive blog. Too many favourites to list but a special mention for AUSTRALASIAN and BEFUDDLE.

  32. For 8, I had DAY-PATIENT at first, which delayed me. Being PATIENT for a DAY would perhaps not be considered long-suffering.

  34. That was a “just hard enough” end to the week, a relief after yesterday’s struggles. 5A is brilliant in every way. Thank you Brummie PeterO.

  35. Enjoyable solve with some good clues.

    I liked the anagrams for ONE-HORSE RACE and TARPAULIN, the wordplay for BEFUDDLE, and the surface for LAVISH.

    Thanks Brummie and PeterO.

  36. Paddymelon @19: Interesting idea on the linked words but I don’t believe there has been any significant shift in the Earth’s axial tilt over the past couple of decades. It does vary on a 40000 year cycle (Milankovitch cycle), but recent shifts due to movement of water, melting of ice etc is of the order of metres, not anything which has had a knock-on effect on the environment.

    My guess is that the puzzle is all about the US election – the ever-trusty Trump will try to befuddle everyone into thinking it’s a one-horse race but will lose by a landslip (de?) to the unproven Harris in spite of spending lavish amounts of money, and will then launch a brutal and rank attack on democracy, rattling his sabre at everyone from supporters such as Truss to the UN General Assembly, baffling no-one. Does any of that ring true?

    A nicely crafted puzzle from Brummie – and thank you for the blog PeterO.

  37. SueM48 @5
    Perhaps I might have pointed out that my admiration for the surface of 5A GYRATION lay in the detailed Dickens reference. Also, this is not the first time in a Brummie crossword that I have wondered why he put a word in inverted commas – surely empty in the sense of hungry is so well accepted that it does not need any excuse, and it would seem counterproductive to draw attention to the device of disembowelling G[u]Y. I wonder if Brummie’s intention was that he feels that the double step of finding GUY as a synonym and then modifying it requires an extra nudge.

  38. “Have a rattle” was a term used by some of my older family in the Black Country in place of “chat with”, “have a natter”, etc. – alas I’ve not heard it for some years. I’ve actually never heard it describing the other half of the double definition, so at odds with most colleagues here!

    Another setter mention for the third day in a row, too! I had great fun and pleased to reach a successful end – best for the weekend and ta Brummie and PeterO.

  39. Very nice puzzle; many more of the answers turned out to be anagrams than I was expecting (for 11 was expecting a giant charade and wondering if it could start AORI) and they were well disguised. The UK geography was gentle for me this time as Surrey and Huntingdon are both relatively familiar and gettable from the rest of the clues. Thanks Brummie and PeterO!

    TassieTim@2: I think technically the book of a musical is the spoken dialogue as opposed to sung lyrics, while the libretto would include both? Close enough in any case, and the dictionary suggests that a libretto can be a book including the text. (Also that “libretto” means “little book.”) With you on “rattling on”!

  40. 16d went in quickly, my holiday reading being the rather niche ‘A Memoir of Michael William Balfe’, (once famous Victorian opera and ballad composer,; it’s full of references such as “The book was the work of Mr Serle, a dramatist now forgotten, but whose good taste and accomplished mastery of his own language secured a libretto of unusual merit.” Always enjoy Brummie, great surfaces – thanks both.

  41. Until I got here I missed the Twist — sorry, Oliver.

    Wondering about the “old county” PeterO refers to I googled “Huntingdon county town” and came up with nothing but lots of references to Huntingdon County, Pennsylvania. Had to add UK to the search fodder to find the original one.

    I biffed in Australasian because the anagram fodder looked right, so missed the subtlety of as-without-sex-at-first.

    Thanks, Brummie and PeterO.

  42. PeterO@37 and Judge@29: Thanks for the explanation and comments re GYRATION.
    That all makes sense.

    Other favourites, OUT-PATIENT for the tricky double negative, LANDSLIP for the surface, ONE HORSE RACE for the anagram, LIBRETTO for the construction and RING PULL for the amusing misdirection.

    I’m thinking the short-lived PM is having a long after-life in crossword land. I’m waiting for a lettuce reference or clue.

    Thanks PeterO and Brummie

  44. [quenbarrow @43
    I had a quick look at your link. The author doesn’t give the full title of Dr. Strabismus!]

  45. Many thanks Brummie and PeterO. Too many favourites to mention. Very fairly clued and very well explained. I am loving the suggestions for themes from paddymelon@19 and JofFT@36. Both work for me. Maybe Brummie will clarify.
    I also thought GYRATION was a reference to Oliver Twist and had a great surface.
    Have a great weekend everyone 😎

  46. I was so excited at finding a new word for 11A I didn’t stop to check I’d used all the right letters and not used any wrong ones. So, last one in was 6D after I’d realised and fixed.

  47. Huntingdon (of the famous animal research lab) and “brutal” in the context of “animal research facility” definitely resonated with each other – but that’s a little less than a theme?

Comments are closed.